Firing mechanism for guns.



No. 718,051- PATENTED JAN. 6, 1903.

A. T. DAWSON &"G. T. BUGKHAM. FIRING MECHANISM FOR GUNS.

APPLICATION FILED 0UT.17, 1902- 3 SHBETSSHEET 1.

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No. 118,051. PATENTED JAN. 6, 1903. A. T. DAWSON & G. T. BUGKHAM.v

FIRING MECHANISM FOR GUNS.

APPLICATION FILED OUT. 17, 1902. K0 MODEL. 3 SHBETB-SHEET 2.

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A T DAWSON & G T BUGKHAM FIRING MEUHANISM FOR GUNS.

I APPLIOATION IILED OCT. 17, 1902.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON AND GEORGE THOMAS BUOKHAM, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNORS TO VICKERSSONS & MAXIM, LIMITED, OF LONDON,

ENGLAND.

FIRING MECHANISM FOR GUNS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 718,051, dated January 6, 1903.

Original application filed February 28, 1902, Serial No. 96,151. Divided and this application filed October 17, 1902. Serial N0.127,731. (No model.)

To all whom'it may concern:

Be it known that we, ARTHUR TREVOR DAW- SON, lieutenant of Royal Navy, and GEORGE THOMAS BUOKHAM, engineer, both residing at 32 Victoria street,Westminster, in the county of London, England, subjects of the King of Great Britain, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin the Firing Mechanismof Guns, of which the following isaspeci- 1o fication.

This invention relates to the firing mechanism of guns, and particularly tothe kind of such mechanism in which the striker or firing-pin is cooked during the opening of the breech, thearrangement ofthe mechanism being such that the striker or firing-pin can be cooked when desired without actuating the breech mechanism.

We will describe our invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the mechanism applied to a gun for firing charges in metallic cartridge-cases.

Figure 1 is an elevation of the breech end of a gun provided with our improvements.

2 5 Figs. 2, 3, and 4 are horizontal sections taken approximately on the line 1 1 of Fig. 1, showing, respectively,-the position of the parts when the gun has been fired, when the strikerhas been partially cocked, and when the striker has been fully cocked. Fig. 5 is a transverse section taken approximately on the line 2 2 of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is a development of a bayonet-slot with which the trigger is provided, as hereinafter explained. 3 5 A is the wall of the breech-chamber of the gun; B, the breech screw or block; C, the swinging carrier in which said block is rotatably mounted; D, the hand-lever for actuating the breech mechanism, and E the trigger. F is the striker or firing-pin, which is of the electrical percussion type, and f is its mainspring, whichbears at its forward end against the bottom of the cavity f in the hollow strikerand at its rear end against a fixed ring f. The said striker is furnished at its outer end with a head having wings f f to permit of the striker being cooked by hand.

G is a cap or sleeve fitted into the rear face of the carrier and retained therein by inscrew-threaded and fitted with a ring g, the rear face of which has inclines g formed thereon. These inclines engage with other inclines g on the striker, so that the latterwill be moved to a slight extent rearwardly when the said ring is turned around the sleeve G. The said ring has a radial stud or projection Figs. 1 and 2, adapted to engage with a cam-groove d of the hand-lever, which groove is so formed that the backward movement of the lever imparts a rotative movement to the ring. The aforesaid movement of the ring has the eflect of withdrawing the nose of the striker into the breech-block far enough to insure that said nose shall be completely below the surface of said block, so as to be in a safety position-i. e'., incapable of striking the detonator or cap of the carfridge when the breech is being. closed. The hand-lever in continuing its backward movement leaves the said stud, and the ring 9 is then held in position by a sliding bolt 9 which works Within a cavity in the carrier O and receives its endwise movement by the angular displacement of the breech-block. The outer end of said bolt lies in contact with the aforesaid ring g, and its inner end is fur- 8o nished with a lateral projection or feather g entering a groove in the breech-block, so that the said bolt while being capable of sliding is prevented from turning about its axis.

The aforesaid incline g of the ring 9 automatically cooks the striker for safety by forcing it rearwardly during the movement of the hand-lever D in commencing the unlocking of the breech, the complete cooking of the striker being effected by hand by drawing it back by the wings or finger-pieces f on its head. The rear face of the breech-block is provided with a segmental piece b which is so arranged that when the block is displaced angularly in its unlocking movement said piece will lie in the path of a projection e of the trigger E to prevent the latter from being pulled and the striker released before the breech is completely closed and the block locked. The said trigger is mounted in a lateral boss 0 of the carrier 0 and consists of a hollow spring-bolt containing within it a spiral spring 2', one end of which bears against the bolt and the other end against a plug 6 which fits into the open end of said hollow bolt. This plug is kept in position by a pin 6 which extends transversely through a longitudinal slot 6 formed in the said bolt, the pin engaging at its ends with the wall of said boss 0 The said plug is also provided with a bayonet-groove 6 (see Fig. 6,) into which enters a pin or projection e on the said bolt, this bayonet-groove being so formed that by removing the pin 6 and imparting a partial rotary movement to the said plug the latter can be detached from the bolt, so as to enable the spring 6 to be removed and replaced by a new one, if necessary. The said bolt is also furnished with an eye 6, by which it is act-uated. This eye also serves for facilitating the handling of the trigger during its removal or displacement from the gun. The said bolt has a wedge-shaped nose a which extends through a slot 9 in the sleeve g and engages under the action of the spring 6 with a lateral notch or recess f formed in the striker. The said sleeve g is thereby securely retained in place with its interrupted screw-threads in engagement with those of the carrier. If, however, it be desired to detach the firinggear, it is only necessary to retract the trigger into a position to bring its nose out of engagement with the slot g ,when the said sleeve will be free to be turned and its threads disengaged. The said notch or recess f is made of sufficient length to permit of the rearward movement of the striker when the latter is being automatically withdrawn into its partially-cocked or safety position above re-- ferred to. The said notch or recess is also formed with an inclined end f which when the striker is being fully cocked by pulling it outwardly will come against a corresponding incline on the trigger, whereby the latter will be caused to give way thereto. When the striker is fully cocked, the trigger engages with a shoulder f on the striker, whereby the latter is retained cocked until said trigger is pulled. In order to limit the extent to which the trigger can be moved when pulled, the breech-block is furnished with a projection b, which when the breech is closed and locked lies a short distance behind the projection e of the trigger and serves as a stop therefor.

The act of operating the hand-lever D to unscrew the block and open the breech also has the effect of imparting an angular move ment to the ring g through the intervention of the stud g*, which ring by the action of its inclines g on the inclines g of the striker forces the latter rearwardly and thereby slightly retracts the striker, as represented in Fig. 3, the notch or recess f permitting of this retraction to take place without im pediment from the nose of the trigger E. Then when the breech has been closed again and the block locked the cocking of the striker is effected by pulling it rearwardly by its wings f As the striker moves rearwardly the inclined end f of the said notch or recess f comes against the inclined nose of the trigger, thereby displacing said trigger until the strikerhas been pulled rearwardly far enough for the nose of the trigger to engage with the shoulder f of the striker and maintain said striker cocked, as above stated. To fire the gun, the trigger is pulled outwardly until its nose escapes from the said shoulder f, whereupon the striker flies forward under the action of its spring and strikes the detonator of the cartridge in the charge-chamber.

What we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. In firing mechanism for guns, the combination With the hand-lever and the swinging carrier, of a spring-controlled firing-pin, a detachable cap for connecting said firing-pin to the carrier, a ring surrounding the firing-pin, means whereby the angular movement of said ring retracts the firing-pin, means whereby the movement of the hand-lever directly imparts angular movement to the ring, and a laterally movable trigger, substantially as described.

2. In firing mechanism for guns, the combi nation with the hand-lever and the swinging carrier, of a spring-controlled firing-pin, a detachable cap for connecting said firing-pin to the carrier, a ring loosely surrounding the firing-pin and having inclines on its rear face, inclined surfaces on the firing-pin adapted to engage with the inclines on the ring, means whereby the movement of the hand-lever directly imparts angular movement to the ring, and a laterally-movable trigger, substantially as described.

3. In firing mechanism for guns, the combination with the hand-lever and the swinging carrier, of a spring-controlled firing-pin, a detachable cap having interrupted screwthreads for connecting it with the carrier, an internally-screw-threaded ring engaging with corresponding external threads on the said cap, inclined surfaces on the rear face of said ring, inclined surfaces on the firing-pin adapted to engage with the inclined surfaces of the ring, means whereby the movement of the hand-lever directly imparts angular movement to the ring, a laterally-movable triggerbolt, an inclined nose thereon normally engaging with lateral recesses in the cap and the firing-pin, and a shoulder on the firing-pin for said trigger to engage with when the firingpin is fully cocked, substantially as described.

4. In firing mechanism for guns, the combination with the hand-lever and the swinging carrier, of a spring-controlled firing-pin, a detachable cap having interrupted screwthreads for connecting it with the carrier, an

IIO

internally-screw-threaded ring engaging with when the latter is fully cocked, and means corresponding external threads on the said for readily detaching said trigger-bolt from cap, inclined'surfaces on the rear face of said I the gun substantially as described. 15 ring, inclined surfaces on the firing-pin I In testimony whereof We have hereunto set adapted to engage with the inclined surfaces l our hands, in presence oftwo subscribing witof the ring, a radial projection on the said nesses, this 6th day of October, 1902.

ring adapted to engage with a cam-groove in ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON the hand-lever, a laterally-movable tri gerbolt, an inclined nose thereon, a spring for GEORGE THOMAS BUOKHAM' Witnesses:

normally keeping said nose in engagement with lateral recesses in the cap and the firing- HENRY KING, pin and with a shoulder on said firing-pin PHILIP MANN. 

